In my monthly links post for February, I mentioned the RSX trade that had gone against some people. The short story is that the Russian market has looked cheap for years. When the market dipped before the Ukraine invasion, a lot of investors stepped in, bought the weakness, and then got demolished when Russia invaded and sanctions sent most of the index components to zero.
“Plus, if you’re going to let morals come into investing, whose morals are you going to use?”
You don’t use “anyones” morales but yours that’s the whole point of morals it’s what YOU stand for and call me naive but I think you should “vote with your money” on companies to invest in that “fit you morally” everyone has different morals and so investing will be different and I understand those who choose not to bring morales into investing but for me personally I decided when it comes to my long term holdings that I must be morally happy with them aka I sold FB before the most recent major sell off
The utility of dollars made includes the impact on our overall well-being throughout the act. My father smoked for over 30 years and passed away from lung cancer. Investing in tobacco for me would bring on irreconcilable differences.
One of my friend also gave me a moral lesson on why he is not comfortable investing in this war-times. I nudged him and asked did he invest post March 2020 period and made money when there was chaos all around the world, people were having hard times, etc.? He hesitated but agreed that he is being naive this time.
I understand there will be people who would have strong moral ethics when it comes to investing, and they may be following it whole-heartedly. But it is subjective matter, and there are no right and wrong answers.
I think it’s generally hard to make a good deal with crooks. To me, it’s qualitatively different to own an honest cigarette company and a totally corrupted gaz company that is a dictator’s personal piggy bank and funds his war.
I have to disagree with you on this one...
“Plus, if you’re going to let morals come into investing, whose morals are you going to use?”
You don’t use “anyones” morales but yours that’s the whole point of morals it’s what YOU stand for and call me naive but I think you should “vote with your money” on companies to invest in that “fit you morally” everyone has different morals and so investing will be different and I understand those who choose not to bring morales into investing but for me personally I decided when it comes to my long term holdings that I must be morally happy with them aka I sold FB before the most recent major sell off
Great note.
The utility of dollars made includes the impact on our overall well-being throughout the act. My father smoked for over 30 years and passed away from lung cancer. Investing in tobacco for me would bring on irreconcilable differences.
Would you have invested in German stocks in 1940 if they looked cheap?
One of my friend also gave me a moral lesson on why he is not comfortable investing in this war-times. I nudged him and asked did he invest post March 2020 period and made money when there was chaos all around the world, people were having hard times, etc.? He hesitated but agreed that he is being naive this time.
I understand there will be people who would have strong moral ethics when it comes to investing, and they may be following it whole-heartedly. But it is subjective matter, and there are no right and wrong answers.
I think it’s generally hard to make a good deal with crooks. To me, it’s qualitatively different to own an honest cigarette company and a totally corrupted gaz company that is a dictator’s personal piggy bank and funds his war.